


like the land split by sea

by arashiyama (harukatenoh)



Series: til kingdom come [1]
Category: World Trigger
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, F/F, M/M, POV Multiple, Political conflict, Royalty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-29
Updated: 2018-08-12
Packaged: 2019-06-18 00:50:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15473841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harukatenoh/pseuds/arashiyama
Summary: Crown Prince of Mikado Arashiyama Jun has been found dead.His longstanding best friend and shadow, apprentice witch Jin Yuuichi, has been charged with the murder. Konami Kirie, knight-champion to be, has some doubts about his guilt. She breaks him out of jail.During the commotion, the princess of Naver Nasu Rei, originally to be wedded to Arashiyama in a peace treaty, flees from Mikado castle with her knight keeper Kumagai Yuuko.The four of them cross paths and join forces, with the fates of their kingdoms weighing on their backs.





	1. there's no hope for the weary

**Author's Note:**

> FINALLYYYYYYYYYYY IT'S ARASHIYAMA'S BIRTHDAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY HAPPY BIRTHDAY THE LOML!!! sorry that you're... well.... dead... in this fic........  
> uhhh we're aiming for fortnightly updates but we will really see how it goes i'm. not good at updating fics.
> 
> work title from run to you by pentatonix, chapter title from no rest for the wicked by lykke li!

Yuuichi didn’t claim to know what everybody was doing. He definitely was not in possession of any sort of omnipotent, all-seeing powers, nor was he currently in a position to be well-informed about the goings-on of the world.

However, he felt like he could safely say that he was probably having the worst possible day in the kingdom—probably in the world—that somebody could have without death or grievous injury involved.

He kicked at the wall of his cell another time, even though it hadn’t done anything the first fifteen times he had done it. By now, it was mostly out of spite.

Time moved slowly here; he had already lost track of how long it had been. It definitely couldn’t be more than a few hours, but it felt like days already. He was fast running out of things in the cell to pick at in his mind and his thoughts had begun to stray towards things he really didn’t want to think about.

_Banging on the door, incensed shouts and angry wails pulling him out of sleep and into a cruel, unforgiving world. He recognizes the flashes of silver as armour through his sleep-haze, feels the pull at his arms as he’s dragged out of bed and onto the ground, accompanied by words that don’t even sound like words from how heavy they are with pain._

He doesn’t know, doesn’t understand why this pain seems to be rooted _in_ him _, accusations levelled and fingers pointed and swords drawn until one voice cuts clear through all the chaos and turmoil; striking with truer aim than a weapon ever could_.

 _“How could you? The Prince? How_ could _you_ — _”_

Yuuichi cut off that line of thought.

He kicked at the wall again. It remained unsympathetic to his plight and unyielding to his efforts. He felt like throwing up.

The cell was cold and drafty; probably crafted that way intentionally to further torment any poor soul who got thrown down here. He gave it another once-over, searching again and again for some kind of weakness, some kind of irregularity, but the four walls remained as oppressively stable as they always were.

Yuuichi was well and truly without hope. The characters painted on his handcuffs—though he knew that they would not give under his fingers if he rubbed at them, would never give—kept his magic repressed. He felt so tightly leashed that the spell was practically twisting around his neck instead of his wrists, offering him no sympathy when he tried to reach out for magic, for power, for hope.

The cold settled in as the hopelessness of his situation did.

He was going to die.

Maybe they would drag him out soon, stringing him up in the castle courtyard for a public execution. Or maybe not—now that he thought about it, that wouldn’t fit Mikado’s image. Maybe they would just leave him down here, to rot, to waste away with only his thoughts for company—and Yuuichi could never stand being alone in his head.

_“Jin,” A light, steady voice sounding as hands breathed at his cheek, brushing at his jaw, pushing at his fringe. “What are you thinking about?”_

_It wasn’t a proper question; it was a veiled reminder. A gentle nudge, to bring him out of his thoughts and into something better, something altogether easier, softer, warmer._

_“Nothing important,” was whispered back, movement of mouth reverent against the hands that were still hovering at his lower face; looking to caress, to pull in and embrace, but holding back._

_And then: leaning into the touch, taking matters into his own hands and breaching those last few millimetres, spurring promise into action as brush became touch and he was being pulled forward. Lips against his, noses barely colliding with how practised the movement was, and above all: the feeling of safety, security, sanctuary._

Yuuichi blinked. He shivered.

There was warmth running down his cheeks. This was why he hated being alone with his thoughts; his head was an unrelenting place to be. The traitorous tears fell despite every instinct in him telling him  _no, no weakness, no vulnerability_.

Then again, there was nobody here to witness it. Perhaps there would be nobody to witness anything from Yuuichi again; perhaps this was it. Perhaps his last encounter with humanity was the harsh grasps of this morning, the grating shouts, the desperate clawing.

Perhaps this was how he would be remembered, his final impression on the world. Guilty. Criminal. Murderer.

His hands were shaking. It hovered at the edge of his thoughts—the deadly, furious truth that threatened to bury itself deep in him and never leave. He was trying so hard, counting bricks and noting cracks and kicking walls— _anything_ , anything at all that would stave it off. Keep the bleak truth at bay. Yuuichi was not one for denying reality; never one for lying to himself, but he was helpless in the face of this.

And who wouldn’t be?

The brightest light in Mikado snuffed out and the blame levelled at him with the deadly precision of a rapier. Nevermind that he didn’t, that he  _wouldn’t_ , that he couldn’t even comprehend that kind of horror, so unthinkable the concept that it made bile rise in his throat.

Regardless of the truth, here he was, and this was his reality, and there was no escaping. No escape from this cell, no escape from his thoughts, no escape from verity.

 _You can always change the future_ , somebody had once told him. His mother, perhaps. His mentor? His memory of then failed him now. The source of the quote didn’t matter anyway, but the meaning. How was he supposed to change the future when he wore layers upon layers of shackles and chains, dragging him down?

It wasn’t funny, but Yuuichi huffed out a laugh anyway. Maybe it was hysteria finally setting in. It wasn’t easy to bear the weight of your future death so heavily; it could be his mind’s last attempt at salvaging the situation by painting it in hilarity. Maybe he just had a terrible sense of humour.

Who knew. He guessed he had plenty of time to ponder these questions now. Might as well get comfortable.

He slumped back on the wall, rolling his shoulders and bitterly ignoring the fact that it was freezing in favour of looking as relaxed as he possibly could. Nobody was there to see him, but it made him feel better anyway. Maybe in a few minutes, a guard would drop by to give him the time of his execution and see him like this; sprawled out against the wall of the cell, shoulders loose and face lacking any tension as he gave the guard a lazy grin. A last act of defiance; a spit in the face of whoever had obviously designed these cells to be as unaccommodating and hopelessness-inducing as possible.

As it turned out, he didn’t have to wait a few minutes.

There was a loud  _bang_ at the door, then a very sharp and echoing  _nnap_ that could’ve only been the sound of the lock breaking and, in front of his unbelieving eyes, the door swung open.

Inside stepped Konami Kirie, holding an axe and a ring of keys, gaze focusing on Yuuichi almost instantly.

“Wow,” she said, “somebody looks comfortable.”

Yuuichi didn’t want to admit to anything like gaping, but he conceded that he may have looked extremely surprised.

“What are you doing here?” Yuuichi gasped, trying to keep the hysteria out of his voice. He was probably having hallucinations. This was it for him. There was no coming back from this.

Konami looked at him as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. That made them both.

“I’m breaking you out,” she said as if it should’ve been obvious, gesturing first to the door with her axe, then to Yuuichi’s cuffs with the keys. “I don’t know which one of these opens your handcuffs though,”

She placed her axe to the side and knelt down, frowning at the keys as she pulled Yuuichi’s cuffs towards her. Yuuichi was still a little stuck on the _breaking out_ part to play guessing games with the keys.

“But… why? You don’t think I… that I did it?” He still couldn’t say it. Still trying to fend off the cold truth, for a few more seconds at least.

Konami scoffed, shoving another key into the keyhole, with no success. “Jin, please. Anybody who has been in this castle for a day knows you didn’t do it. You’ve been head over heels for the Prince for _years_ , whichever bastard did this chose the worst possible scapegoat.”

She tried another key. It slid in easily, and with a _click_ , his cuffs were sliding off. Yuuichi stared down at his hands, stretching his fingers with dazed wonder.

“You _didn’t_ do it, right?” Konami asked, giving him a hard stare.

The breath caught in Yuuichi’s throat, how quickly he was stumbling to correct her. “Of course not. Never,” he breathed.

Konami gave him a look that told him that he had just proved her point. “Exactly. Of course not. Now, get up, we don’t have much time. Put this on.”

She handed him a black hood. Yuuichi stared at it.

Konami sighed impatiently. “I’m telling the guards that I’m taking you to be killed. I’d say I have plenty of reason to want revenge, in their eyes,”

Yuuichi nodded. There was a part of him, loud and swimming around in his thoughts, that told him he was still dreaming, that soon he would wake up back in the same unfortunate situation he had been in. No saviour. No second chance.

He ignored this part of him. Instead, he raspily asked, “Is that how you got the keys?”

Konami nodded, then turned her gaze to follow Yuuichi’s, which was staring at the broken lock on the door. She shrugged. “I didn’t want to waste time trying to figure out which key opened it.”

Yuuichi snorted. Typical Konami.

Konami looked very pleased with his reaction. The expression softened her features entirely, reminding Yuuichi of how young she was, of how she was still the bratty younger sister he had picked up along the way some years ago. He remembered—with some frustration at how late the realization had come—that she was in the same position too. He wasn’t the only one who had lost tonight.

“You smiled,” was all she told him. He had almost forgotten he could do that.

“Thank you, Konami,” he murmured as she pulled him towards the door. Now she was smiling too, a jaded and determined smirk on her face as she met his eyes.

Yuuichi raised the hood up and pulled it over his head, but not before he heard the quiet “Thank you, too,” from Konami.

The world around him was dark, but he could feel Konami’s strong grip on his right shoulder and on his left wrist. It was disconcerting, but he trusted Konami to lead him safely, to get them both out of this. It occurred to him that she was all he had left in this castle; his last connection to the world that resided within these walls.

She was all he had left of Arashiyama. And maybe, he was all she had left of him too. Konami gripped him a little tighter, a little more desperate. He realized; she could’ve stayed out, could’ve continued her life as is, instead of throwing in her lot with Yuuichi. Now they were in it for the long run, the both of them.

Then again, they had probably been in it for the long run for a long time. The three of them: the prince, his best friend and his younger cousin, now reduced to two.

 

♛

 

They had been walking for a while, travelling up the weaving corridors and through suspecting gazes, when Yuuichi felt it.

The touch of fresh air on his skin, swirling at his nose and filling up his lungs, even through the fabric of the hood. He had only been trapped for a few hours, but the air down there had been stale and cloying and heavily layered with magic. The damp, oppressive type of magic that made up warding spells or dampening spells; the type that Yuuichi hated most.

He took in a deep breath, and then another, and another. The aftereffects of the cuffs were finally fading now, and he almost felt his power returning with every breath he took. His entire body tingled with it, his connection to something so core and essential finally returning. Most people, in their lifetime, had never gotten cut off from their magic. Most people were lucky.

“Careful,” Konami warned, although fondness tinged her tone. “You’re leaking power all over the place. It’ll track attention.”

Yuuichi realized she was right and tried to reign in his magic. It was hard since all he wanted to do was let it wash off of him in waves, twisting and revelling in the freedom that he had once taken for granted, but he was a disciplined, accomplished witch.

 _My best and brightest student_ , said his mentor’s voice. Yuuichi felt his control slip at the memory.

Teeth gritted, he pulled in harder, clenching his fists as he drew every remainder of power back inside, locking it away despite his heart’s protests. He couldn’t give them away now. While the chances of coming across another magic user were slim, nearly everybody in Mikado had some connection with it. Any guard, servant or gardener could pick up on it if he let his magical aura get away from him.

He breathed out.

Behind him, Konami made a sound of approval. He had long since lost all sense of direction; the only thing he was sure of was that they were outside. It was strange, as somebody who once knew the castle inside out. Even though he knew logically that nothing had changed, that Castle Mikado was the Castle Mikado it always had been, he felt a shift inside of him.

Never again would he slip through quiet corridors, unnoticed and unhurried. No longer could he walk carelessly into the kitchens with the safety of knowing that every cook knew his face. He once thought that he loved these walls, but all he had ever loved was what they held.

And without Arashiyama Jun to grace Castle Mikado’s halls, what else did they have for him?

Just like that, unbidden, his name crossed Yuuichi’s thoughts. Maybe it wasn’t fair of him to try so hard to avoid it, to avoid _his_ memory, but the wound he left was still fresh and festering and Yuuichi wondered if it would be better to amputate it altogether.

Then again, he wouldn’t quite know where to start with that. There was no part of him that could be defined without Arashiyama. Not anymore.

He felt the terrain shift underneath him, the sturdy stone of walkways and pavement giving to soft grass.

“Almost there,” Konami grunted, keeping up appearances as they travelled the last stretch to freedom. Yuuichi still couldn’t tell where they were exactly, but he knew that only the ground leading up to the castle walls were grassy like this; his escape wouldn’t be through any door. When you couldn’t go through, go around. Go over.

He felt Konami’s hands leave his back, then the hood was being pulled off unceremoniously, leaving Yuuichi blinking in the midday sun. It felt wrong that the sun was still shining when Yuuichi’s life had just gone through such extreme upheaval. When he was currently making a covert escape from probable death. Broad daylight just didn’t suit his current circumstances.

Konami was grinning at him, one foot on the bottom rung of a ladder leant up against the lowest part of the castle walls.

“After you,” she beckoned, steadying the ladder. Yuuichi had half a mind to ask how she had managed to set that up; even at the very back of the castle where nobody went, a ladder would’ve been hard to arrange.

Still, they had little time to waste now and plenty to question later. Eyeing once over to make sure it was steady, he pulled himself up onto it. The ladder held steady as Konami urged him onwards.

It felt absurd that his freedom was so easily gained as he climbed up each step, but he wasn’t about to jinx anything, so he kept moving forward. That was all he could do now. Move forward.

He was almost at the top of the wall. There would be a guard stationed to this area, doing patrols, but if he and Konami were fast enough they could be over before anybody even saw. Time was of the essence, which was why Yuuichi couldn’t afford to think about what he was leaving behind.

_“I hate this castle,”_

_His laughter, like the rest of him, was bright and easy, breathing happiness into a sour mood. “Why is that?”_

_“Too big,” and he tried to scowl, tried to keep up his annoyance with the long corridors and empty rooms but like always, he was pulled along in the other’s light._

_“It’s my home,” said with all the weight of a whisper, audible but holding the same ethereal quality, making him lean in closer, making him vy for more. “I’ll guide you through it until you learn everything,”_

_He believed that. Through his bright eyes, under his gentle touch, there was nothing that couldn’t become beautiful. Nothing he couldn’t come to love._

His memory, like the man himself, made a habit out of slipping past Yuuichi’s defences. Yuuichi stopped to take in a deep breath, and then another, and then another. He couldn’t afford to waste time, but his mind obviously had other plans, and he wasn’t quite sure he could continue anyway, with the way he was shaking.

Moving forward was an ugly affair.

“Jin? Are you okay?” Konami called. Yuuichi realized the folly of his position; halfway up a ladder and shaking so hard he couldn’t bring himself to move, somehow so tethered to the place that had just jailed him that he felt one more step could ruin him.

Yuuichi’s grip on the ladder increased. He forced a breath in and then out because somewhere along the line he had started holding his breath, his entire being revolting against the idea of leaving the past nineteen years of his life behind so easily. So simply. Just over a ladder and out of the woods.

“Jin, we have to _go_ ,”

Konami’s voice was urgent now. Yuuichi didn’t need to look down to know what the look on her face was, all grisly determination and frustrated fear. They had to move. He had to keep moving.

With white knuckles and gritted teeth, Yuuichi pushed forward. In a brief attempt at feeling something, he fancied thoughts like _he would want me to keep going_ , but even though they were true, they just felt empty.

It didn’t exactly matter, did it? What a dead person wanted.

Yuuichi made it to the top of the wall in time for his legs to give out.

Konami followed soon enough, scaling the wall considerably faster than Yuuichi did. Probably helped that she didn’t have a mental breakdown halfway through, but Yuuichi figured he was allowed some ill-timed moments of weakness. He hugged his knees to his chest, trying to steady his breathing and pretend that he was going to be fine.

Konami gave him a look but didn’t say anything in favour of turning around and kicking the ladder off the wall. It fell to the ground, thudding against the dirt with the sound swallowed up by the grass, and it set in that this was it.

“We have to jump from this side,” Konami said, sounding a little _excited_ about it. Always the daredevil. “It’s… um, quite the fall, but if you land properly, you’ll be fine.” The second part was more hesitant, sounding like she was reciting something she had heard, and Yuuichi wondered just how many people had taken part in this escape attempt. From getting the keys, to being let out into the courtyard without question, to the ladder being left out in the open, to the suspicious lack of guards on this part of the wall. Some unknowing accomplices, sure, but there had to be more to it than that.

Strangely, it was that thought, that there were undercurrents of support and help all over the castle behind him, that pushed Yuuichi to his feet.

Konami gave him a once-over, and asked in an uncharacteristically soft voice, “Okay?”

Yuuichi nodded. He still felt trembly, but it wasn’t like he had a choice. Face forward. Step into the future. Rebuild.

He looked down at the drop, which was honestly dizzying in its height. He doubted that Konami, for all of her training, would be able to stick the landing properly, much less a witch apprentice who spent his days reading and studying.

Yuuichi looked back at Konami, who was eyeing the drop with both apprehension and anticipation. It was with a fond sigh that he nudged his unreasonable, over-the-top little sister in the shoulder.

“Change of plans, because yours sucks.” He informed her. She looked offended, but made a grunt of assent, because while Konami may actively participate in bad decisions, she still knew they were bad decisions.

Yuuichi stood at the edge of the wall, flexing his fingers as he felt the slow, familiar push of magic in him. After a few seconds of appraisal, feeling out the magical currents in the air and around the wall, he turned back to Konami and offered her his hand.

She rolled her eyes, muttering “ _Witches_ ,” but didn’t hesitate in taking it.

Yuuichi felt another smile building up. “On the count of three,” he cautioned, “jump.”

Konami nodded. Yuuichi pulled at his magic, weaving it around him and his companion as his grip on her hand tightened.

“One…” he muttered, tightening the bonds. “Two…”

Then, directing all of the magic building around them to their feet, he called “ _Three!_ ” and they were both leaping, both falling.

The ground rushed up towards them worryingly quickly, enough for Yuuichi to panic about the integrity of his spell, before they were slowing and landing with the weight of a feather.

He felt the magic around them release, returning to its original flow, and breathed out a relieved sigh. Turning to Konami, he watched as she examined her feet, nodding slowly with a begrudgingly impressed expression.

“Not bad,” she huffed out. This time, Yuuichi did smile. They took a few steps, out of the shadow of the wall.

A shard of hope, borne out of the deep darkness that filled his lungs, flickered to life inside of him.

Then, they heard voices.

Yuuichi froze at the same time Konami did, the same panicked determination coming to life on their faces. They were so close to freedom; they wouldn’t let _anything_ stop them now.

The voices were coming from the other side of the wall, hard to make out through the distance and solid rock.

Then, the unmistakable sound of wood scraping against stone. The ladder being put back up again.

Yuuichi’s magic crackled to life around him with _force_ , strong enough to whip at his hair. Konami was already gripping her axe.

“Should we run?” Yuuichi asked.

Konami shook her head. “There’s a while til we get to cover, we wouldn’t make it,” she said with a grimace. Yuuichi looked around them, taking in the grassy fields that stood between them and the far-off forest. “It’s probably just some guards investigating. If we take them out we’ll buy some time, but if they raise the alarm we’ll never get away.”

Yuuichi nodded. It was confrontation or death. This time with Konami’s life on the line as well. It made his aura surge just a little stronger.

He would not lose anymore.

He saw two figures rise up on the wall. He wondered how they were going to get down; it occurred to him that they might see him and go to ring the alarm without engaging. Yuuichi’s magic would have to stop that outcome. He wasn’t the best at long range but it would have to make do. He would make do, no matter what.

Then, in a show of strength and agility that left Yuuichi rather impressed, one of the figures leapt off the wall and took the fall with a neat roll, bracing themselves in a perfect landing.

The two had apparently not noticed, or didn’t care enough, about Yuuichi and Konami, because the person immediately turned back to the wall without even sparing them a glance, and held out their hands.

And then, in an even _more_ impressive feat, the remaining person on the wall jumped into the other’s waiting arms, and Yuuichi watched in mute awe as they caught their companion firmly.

In the exact moment they stepped out of the shadows, they must’ve caught sight of Yuuichi and Konami, because they froze. That was also the moment their identities became apparent to Yuuichi.

Konami got there before he could. “Princess Nasu,” she challenged, levelling her axe at them. “And her knight keeper, Kumagai.”

Yuuichi felt something inside of him bubble, as some possibilities started to click into place. Princess Nasu was not from Mikado; she was the princess of a neighbouring nation. Sent to their kingdom to foster peace, the Princess had been arranged to marry Arashiyama.

Yuuichi admitted he may have some personal reasons to dislike her, but there was also _plenty_ of reason for a citizen of a neighbouring, possibly rival, country to take out the prince of Mikado. A political move to leave the country in instability. A last-ditch attempt at escaping an arranged marriage. It didn’t matter, did it? The possibility was there.

Even more suspicious when one considered their hasty covert escape.

The knight, Kumagai, drew her own sword. “Knight Konami,” she acknowledged the challenge. “And…”

Her gaze turned to Yuuichi, but he saw no recognition in her eyes. He had always kept out of the spotlight, but it was still a little weird for her to not even recognize the person she was framing for murder. Yuuichi felt somewhat offended.

Konami gave a menacing smile. “And _Jin Yuuichi_. Your poor choice of scapegoat.”

So Konami had come to the same conclusion as Yuuichi had. As she held Kumagai’s attention, Yuuichi turned his gaze towards the Princess, standing behind her knight. She had a bow but it was unstrung, though Yuuichi could feel some magical residue around her. An archer, and possible witch, then. Perhaps a bigger threat than Kumagai, though the acrobatics from earlier didn’t escape Yuuichi’s memory.

Still, if Konami took Kumagai, Yuuichi could handle the Princess.

Nasu met his gaze and said, “You were the one who killed the Prince.” Her tone was cool, condemning in its frankness. Yuuichi just kept finding reasons to dislike her. Or, she just kept giving him reasons to dislike her.

He didn’t like to hear the accusation out loud, even if he knew it wasn’t true.

Kumagai was frowning, the confusion clear in her eyes poorly covered by hostility. “Scapegoat? What is that supposed to mean?” She snapped.

Was she acting innocent? What purpose would that serve? Yuuichi obviously knew that he hadn’t done it, so the scapegoat act would be useless against him.

“Don’t bother,” Konami scoffed, her weapon still raised. The tension between her and Kumagai was viscous; if this went on for any longer, they would be in a fight they couldn’t back out of.

“Konami, hold up,” he said, at the same time the princess laid a hand on Kumagai’s shoulder and said, “Kuma-chan, wait.”

Konami and Kumagai had similar, jerking reactions to the interruption from their companions.

“Princess,” Kumagai hissed, her attention switching between Konami and Nasu, “they’re pointing weapons at us.”

Princess Nasu was level and insistent as she pulled at Kumagai’s arm, causing her to reluctantly lower her weapon. “They think we killed the Prince,”

Kumagai instantly made a noise of protest. “What?” She whirled around to face Yuuichi and Konami, accusing, and it wasn’t like the Princess had been _wrong_ , so the two kept silent. “Why would you think that? Aren’t _you_ the one that killed him?”

“ _No,_ ” Yuuichi snarled, it coming out more aggressive than he thought it would be. Touchy topic. “I didn’t fucking k—… do _anything_ to the Prince, _never_ ,”

He pretended the way his voice wavered was because he was emotional at a beloved monarch’s death, and not because he was mourning the love of his dark, ugly life. It was easy now, passing it off as casual. The cons of being in love with the prince of a country.

“Are we supposed to just believe that?” Kumagai shot back. She was angry. Yuuichi was angry. There was something that they were both missing in this situation, but he was too wrapped up in being fucking _tired_ of being accused of murdering his boyfriend that he couldn't spare the energy to care.

“I can vouch for him,” Konami snapped back. Her weapon was lowered now too, though with the look on her face she seemed ready to raise it again at any second. “I am the Prince's cousin. His Champion. Are you going to doubt me?”

Kumagai cast Yuuichi another doubtful look, but she stepped back and left her defensive stance. It was obvious she didn't trust them but that was fine. She wasn't in the clear in Yuuichi's eyes either.

“We didn't kill him,” Nasu begun. “I can see why you think that, but we didn't. I swear on it.” She was as collected as ever as she said it, which unnerved Yuuichi. It was hard to get a read on the Princess; a side effect for her of being raised in politics and royalty, he guessed. She was imposing.

“All we're guilty of is taking advantage of the confusion to… disembark. Without him, the marriage is dissolved anyway. We just want to get back to Naver.” Kumagai added. She, in comparison to the Princess, was an open book. Conviction, desperation, weariness; she radiated it all with every mannerism.

Yuuichi realised that she wasn't lying. He trusted his people reading skills enough to tell him that.

Konami trusted them too, because she was looking to Yuuichi for his opinion. He was still wary, especially of the Princess, but he gave a slight nod anyway. It would be pointless for any of them to die here fighting each other. They would have plenty of brushes with death soon.

Konami huffed, lifting her axe up to slide it back into its holder on her back. Kumagai and Nasu watched the movement cautiously as it happened.

Yuuichi kept a close eye on them too. It was obvious they both considered Konami the larger threat, which was fine by him. He was slowly reining in his magic, lowering his guard, but not so much that he would be defenceless if anything happened. He thought he believed that they were innocent, but there were still many holes in their story. Why they were abandoning the escort of Naver soldiers that had come with them to Mikado. Why they felt the need to take some covert back route out of the castle.

There was definitely something that they were hiding.

Still, they were no longer an immediate danger. With a glare cast over his shoulder at them, he turned to Konami.

“We should get out of here,” he said. Konami nodded, then jerked her head in the direction of the hills sloping to the west.

“We’re headed that way,” she instructed, keeping her voice low so the others didn’t overhear. Yuuichi assumed she had some kind of plan, avoiding the woods and going for the foothills, so he didn’t argue. Konami then turned to Kumagai and Nasu with a hard glare. In a tone of voice they could definitely hear, she said: “Stay out of our way.”

Leaving them behind left a sour taste in Yuuichi’s mouth, but there was no other option. They were all on the run.

“Wait,” Kumagai called as they both started walking away. “We… we don’t know our way around Mikado. If you could guide us to… some road, or a trade route, that leads to Naver…” 

It was clear that she was hesitant to ask for their help, but she still asked, eyes cast downwards and hands clenched.

It was obvious that they had made their escape hastily, with no plan for what came next. The chances of them having a hand in the Prince’s death dwindled to almost nothing.

Konami hesitated, casting a look at Kumagai and Nasu that was more sympathetic than Yuuichi would’ve expected. Then again, Konami always had a soft spot, even if she tended to cover it up with her bluster.

She looked at Yuuichi, clearly waiting for a decision. It felt _wrong_ , that she was now looking to Yuuichi for guidance when the two of them had only ever been lead by somebody else, trailing along in the shadow of a Prince, happy to be by his side. Yuuichi wasn’t the leader of their group, but who else did they have?

“Please. We… we just want to leave,”

Deep in thought, Yuuichi almost missed who the speaker was. Princess Nasu was standing in front of Kumagai now, staring directly at Yuuichi. It was plain in her voice, it was plain in her eyes. For the first time, Yuuichi saw raw emotion on Nasu’s face; a pleading desperation that told of somebody who was almost out of hope.

It was this that tipped the scales in their favour. Yuuichi couldn’t leave them behind. Not when he was so intimately acquainted with how it felt to feel hopeless.

He nodded at Konami, then at Kumagai and Nasu.

“Follow us, then.”


	2. hold on to each other

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kumagai pov.
> 
> chapter title from june by florence and the machine. sorry nothing happens much in this.

When Yuuko had asked to join Jin and Konami in their escape, she had expected them to have more of… a plan.

There was a part of her that couldn’t fault them for that; obviously, they had just been through a very harrowing experience, and it wasn’t like her and Rei’s escape had been that amazingly laid out either. The larger and louder part of her, however, was irritated that these two people who had seemed so sure of themselves now had the four of them wandering around in the hills, completely lost.

Lost and in danger.

Lost, with  _ Rei  _ in danger.

That was probably where most of her problem stemmed from. Yuuko could already tell that the constant travel was wearing on Rei, with the way her footsteps landed a little heavier and her eyes shifted a little slower. Yuuko would like if they could  _ stop _ and  _ rest _ so that Rei wouldn’t collapse and force their entire story to come out.

It honestly astounded Yuuko that they had managed to keep it a secret for this long. Naver’s miracle Princess Nasu Rei, with a heart of iron and gaze of steel, but a body that couldn’t quite match up. It wasn’t like it mattered if the secret came out now, on the run with two people who probably couldn’t care less about the possible political scandal, but Yuuko felt that protectiveness surge up anyway. She didn’t want anybody seeing Rei as weak. She  _ wasn’t _ , but people rarely ever looked past that.

With a grit of her teeth, Yuuko fixes her gaze on the horizon. More hills. Wonderful.

Before she could stew in her anger more, Konami gave a shout.

“I’ve found it!” She yelled, a war cry and release of frustration wrapped up into one as she shrugged off her axe sheath and knelt down. Yuuko had absolutely no idea what she was supposed to be looking at; as far as her very functional eyes were concerned, they were stopping and rejoicing over a tuft of grass.

Then, Jin was kneeling beside Konami and doing… some magic thing and the side of the hill collapsed. The dirt and grass fell away to reveal a doorway.

Yuuko was stunned into silence. Beside her, Rei gave a breathless  _ oh _ .

Konami, directing her speech at Jin as she stood up and brushed off her knees, starting saying “Seriously, you should’ve been able to find this easily considering how much time you spen—” She was cut off by Jin decisively yanking the door open, letting it thud against the packed dirt that made up the doorway as he smiled blandly.

“Guess I haven’t been here in a while. Even the greatest of people experience memory loss, Konami,” he said, though his tone was a little too dark to pass off as casual as he wanted to sound.

Yuuko didn't trust him at all. She didn't think he was the killer, that much was obvious, but there was something  _ off _ .

Jin smiled a lot. It would’ve made some sense, for him to try and be optimistic, if any of those smiles had seemed sincere. Yuuko, experienced in reading the emotions that would fall across Rei’s face like rainfall, there and then gone, could tell that they weren’t. They weren’t even fake smiles made in sincerity; there was just some empty reason behind every one of Jin’s smirks or grins, and one that Yuuko didn’t like.

He was hiding something. She didn’t know what, and she knew that it wasn’t so much that it made him a danger, but it set her on edge regardless. There was something in this situation that she was missing, and considering how vulnerable she and Rei were; they couldn’t afford that kind of slipup.

Her eyes stayed on Jin’s back as he entered through the door and as Konami followed, watching until they were swallowed up by the darkness.

Yuuko turned around.

Rei, with red staining her cheeks and her breath catching slightly, stepped forward and took the proffered hand that Yuuko gave her. There was always something electrifying about having Rei accept her help so easily; Yuuko remembered a time when it was all they argued about, the boundaries between assistance and pity and protectiveness and overbearing.

Now they fell into sync easily, a steady routine between them that spelled out  _ I have your back _ , nothing less and nothing more.

“Okay?” Yuuko asked, maybe because she needed to hear it. 

Rei, in contrast to her pale face, had a sparkling look in her eyes as she replied: “I’m fine,”. Then, a considering pause, before a smile flickered across her face and she teased “Worrywart,”

Yuuko was hit with warmth and she gave Rei a fond smile in return. It was kind of amazing to think about; even though they were vulnerable and in danger, there was exhilaration running through Yuuko’s veins. They were making their big escape. Years of plans formed under blankets and in dark hallways, half-baked dreams and fantasies of sweeping a princess off her feet and disappearing into the night with her coming to realization.

She faintly heard Konami and Jin bickering over something or other and figured that they should go inside before the other two get suspicious.

Still, she held the moment for just a bit longer. Surrounded by nothing but hills and bushes and grass, it was easy to take Rei’s hand like this, to stare at her uninhibited. It felt like a luxury, this small act of intimacy, and Yuuko wanted to make the most of it.

“Shall we go?” Rei asked. Yuuko thought the breathlessness she could hear was from more than the long trek.

“After you, Princess,” Yuuko said, holding the door open for Rei.

 

♛

 

The door lead into a hideout neatly carved into the inside of the wall; with another surge of magic, Jin covered up the entrance like they had never been there. In the logical part of Yuuko’s brain, which was intimately acquainted with the dangers of being royalty, she knew it made sense. There would have to be a safe house close by in the case of danger for the royal family, but that didn’t stop her from being mildly impressed.

The shelter was one room, with one side occupied by a table and closet, while the other held sleeping mats. It obviously wasn’t a place where they could stay for a long time, but it served their purposes well enough as she watched Jin walk over to the closet and pull out blankets and pillows.

The sun had begun its descent when they found the shelter, but it didn’t stop the nervous energy that ran through Yuuko as she watched Jin set up four makeshift beds. It looked more like he was going through the motions than anything, wholly focused on his task as Konami wandered around the shelter and checked on the various wards.

“Well,” Jin said, standing up straight and looking over to where Yuuko and Rei stood. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m exhausted, so I’ll be taking my leave from consciousness.” His tone was open and light but it was  _ empty _ , just like the smile he shot at them, like the look in his eyes.

Yuuko couldn’t understand it. From what she had gathered, Jin was some newly fledged witch who had trained in the castle and nothing more—so why was he acting like there was something more? What was she missing?

The uncertainty settled badly in her stomach, and it must have shown on her face, because Rei was stepping up and placing a hand on her forearm.

“Sleep sounds good,” she said, more to Yuuko than to the other two occupants of the room. Yuuko nodded; she could tell the signs of exhaustion on Rei’s face even if they were subtle, and after the day they’d both had, it would be wise to sleep.

Of course, Yuuko was in the habit of rarely sleeping more than a few hours at a time, borne out of fear of leaving Rei vulnerable, so it was more that it’d be wise for Rei to sleep. Yuuko would stand guard, like she did best.

She helped guide Rei into bed and settled down in the futon beside her, checking again with Konami that the shelter was secure. In an attempt to seem unassuming, she feigned sleep, listening as Rei’s breathing evened out and she could begin to lie at ease.

She wasn’t sure the amount of time that passed as she lay there; the loss of the stars above her to show her the way was felt strongly, but when she heard the shuffling of blankets and feet, she immediately tensed. Staying still and continuing her facade of sleep, she listened.

It was a mistake.

Yuuko didn’t mean to eavesdrop but there was only one room in the shelter, and it was plainly obvious as Jin and Konami left their beds to go sit on the other side of the room. 

She wanted to be asleep so suddenly and so badly at that moment, hearing the distinct sniffles of somebody crying but trying not to show it, but she found herself unwilling spectator to this too-intimate moment with no way out.

“Hey,” she heard Jin murmur.

Konami sniffled some more, the sound muffled. Both the tears and the hand she must’ve been holding over her mouth distorted her words as she mumbled back “Hey,”

There was an aching period of silence, only punctuated by Konami’s tears, until Jin worked up the motive to say more.

“Did you… did you see the body?”

His voice was quiet, despairing, and Yuuko was neither familiar with Jin nor good at reading people, but she could tell when an emotion didn’t belong in a voice, and nothing had ever quite sounded wrong to her like the way defeat sat in Jin’s tone.

Konami took a long time to respond.

“Yeah,” she finally hiccuped, unable to keep her tears at bay despite how hard she was trying. “It was… he was…” She broke off with a choked sob. “He was so  _ cold _ ,”

Yuuko, who had observed every interaction Rei and the prince had had with a reserved gaze, recalled her impression of him. Nowhere in that image did the descriptor  _ cold _ fit. 

Jin gave an ugly, bitter laugh. “Can hardly believe that,” he said, sounding like he believed it all too well.

“I can hardly believe he’s gone,” Konami said, her voice heartbreakingly soft in comparison to the spirited, loud knight who Yuuko had met earlier.

It became even worse when Jin replied. Yuuko suddenly hated herself with vehemence for ever being suspicious of Jin, for forgetting what kind of situation he was in when he whispered back “It feels like everything good has gone, huh.” 

She wasn’t sure what Jin was,  _ who _ Jin was, but the fondness he held for the prince was unmistakable. 

Konami made some noise of agreement. Yuuko had never so desperately wished she could be unconscious.

Jin’s voice was soft, constantly on the verge of breaking with the amount of emotion put into each word. It was a far cry from how empty his tone had been mere hours earlier and Yuuko almost preferred the distant, fake cheer to this. “I can’t believe the world is just going on. I—… I can’t…  _ live  _ in a world without him, Kirie. How can anybody?”

Konami crossed the line from sniffling to sobbing, gasping into her palm as she tried to fight the tears back. Yuuko was barely attuned to magic but even she could feel the way Jin’s aura was going haywire, dipping from burning intensity to flat emptiness.

Through her hiccups, Konami spoke. “I can’t believe som—” and she stopped because she was crying too hard, had to regain her breath before forcing out the next words, “—I can’t believe somebody could do it. To him. Why… why him?” Her tone was angry for all of a few seconds, before it dropped into awful, crushing defeat. “What has he ever done to deserve that? He was so, so good—” 

Her voice dropped out until it was barely a sound; barely a breath.

Jin was silent. It spoke louder than any words could.

“I don’t think there’s ever going to be somebody that good in the world again,” Konami whispered, her tone fierce and heated with love and despair. 

Yuuko was cold all over.

She had been so preoccupied with getting Rei out of there, with taking the opportunity that had been presented to them that she hadn’t fully considered the people she found herself requesting help from, the people she was now intruding on. To have a sovereign, a cousin, a loved one, somebody that had been so good and bright, ripped away and without any closure on the killer. 

Yuuko tried to imagine herself in that position; Rei lying in the coffin and her on the run but she soon found that she couldn’t stomach it, couldn’t handle the sheer despair that curled its way into her veins.

Almost unconsciously, she reached out to where she thought Rei’s hand would be. All it took was a brush of fingers, the barest of contact, for Yuuko to remember what she had. How lucky she was.

It reminded her of how hard she needed to fight to protect this.

 

♛

 

When morning came, there was no indication except for the push of somebody’s hand against her shoulder, shaking Yuuko out of her fitful sleep.

She was immediately tense as she jerked out of bed, hands already scrambling to grab the weapon she always kept close during the night, her movements frantic until she met Rei’s calming gaze.

“Good morning,” Rei said, the barest smile playing at her features. “Did you sleep well?” Yuuko breathed out, pulling the blanket around herself a little more.

_ No _ , she wanted to say.  _ I was plagued with dreams of me walking into your room one morning and finding you dead and we need to get out of this country so I can get you to safety because I can’t let anything, _ anything _ happen to you I don’t know what I would do _ —

She decided to shrug and say “Well enough, my Princess.”

Rei knew that Yuuko was lying, but all she did was sigh before standing back up. Yuuko looked around the room, finding herself the last one to wake up as Konami sat in a chair sharpening her axe while Jin set out food on a table. There were no signs of last night’s conversation on either of their faces; Konami’s expression was intense with concentration as she worked at the axe, while Jin was happily setting out plates with a practised flourish of his wrist.

It told Yuuko of two people who were very versed at moving on or at least pretending to. She didn’t know whether that boded well for her and Rei.

“Good morning,” Jin chirped, gesturing to the table. The food wasn’t much, just bread and dried meat, but Yuuko hadn’t eaten properly for almost a day now. Which meant that Rei hadn’t eaten for almost a day too, and that was dangerous. Yuuko frowned.

A hand around Rei’s wrist, she pulled her towards the table and sat her down. Placed her piece of bread in front of Rei silently, then went about tearing apart the meat. She knew that Rei was frowning, but Yuuko was intent on making it clear that she wasn’t changing her mind.

There was a resigned sigh, and from where she was looking at the table, Yuuko saw Rei pick up the bread and break it in half. She kept half and returned the other half to Yuuko.

Yuuko smiled as Rei rolled her eyes. Beside them, Jin and Konami both took their seats, with Konami eyeing the exchange sceptically.

“Don’t even think about it,” Konami snapped as Jin reached over to her plate.

Jin grinned lazily and retracted his hand, saying “You wound me, Konami,” in a playful tone. “We have to establish our dominance as the more powerful pairing in this situation,”

Yuuko scoffed under her breath. Rei had an amused expression on her face, but there was a clear hint of something else underneath it. Yuuko felt like rolling her eyes, easily recognizing the look.

Rei had a peculiar competitive streak that ran a mile wide, especially when it came to affairs involving Yuuko; Yuuko was sure she was in for a headache.

“Yuuko,” Rei said, soft tone belying her steely eyes, “say ‘ah’.”

Yuuko met Rei’s gaze. It became clear in a mere second that Rei wasn’t going to back down.

Suffering the hit to her dignity instead of protesting because the look on Rei’s face was ridiculously irresistible, Yuuko opened her mouth. Rei used her chopsticks to delicately feed Yuuko a piece of food, then went back to eating. Rei was looking down at her food, but Yuuko could still clearly see the pleased expression on her face; it made her want to sigh and laugh at the same time. She looked over at their companions to gauge their reactions and— _ oh _ .

Evidently, Rei wasn’t the only one with a competitive streak in the group. 

Konami was now staring, eyes narrowed and fiery, at Rei and Yuuko. It would bother Yuuko more if she didn’t look so much like a petulant child as she was doing it. Actually, it was rather funny, but the blaze in Konami’s eyes told Yuuko her amusement would be terribly received if voiced aloud.

Instead, she simpled watched as Konami glared down at her bread, ripping off a piece and downright brandishing it in Jin’s direction. Despite Konami’s hostile demeanour, Jin simply accepted the bread with easy movements, leaning his head forward to gently take it from Konami’s hand. 

With the way he chewed, sporting the most self-indulgent grin Yuuko had ever seen, he looked like he had been expecting this to happen all along. Konami’s expression was still stuck between determination and embarrassment. 

The entire image, frankly, was ridiculous.

Yuuko laughed. 

It was unexpected, both by her and by everybody else in the room. She brought up a hand to cover her mouth, startled by the sound and staring at the other people at the table with wide eyes. She couldn’t remember the last time she had laughed; the past month had been an unsettling and muted time for her, the past day even more so. 

In front of her, Rei had a surprised expression. Beautifully surprised and startlingly fond, it was still surreal sometimes for Yuuko to remember how deep and devoted Rei’s affections for her ran. It made her feel like blushing, having that look fixated on her.

Yuuko’s other companions looked less struck by her laughter, naturally. Jin seemed both pleasantly surprised and amused, while Konami had an honestly impressive amount of emotion on her face. There was heat rising in her cheeks, even as she looked caught between amusement and indignance, and when her eyes met Yuuko’s she hastily looked away.

Jin’s amusement only seemed to grow at that. 

Before Yuuko could really ponder that though, her gaze was drawn back to Rei. 

Her princess, her love, was now smiling, a happy and adoring beam that made Yuuko’s face flush crimson. She looked away for a moment, trying to get her expression under control, but when her eyes flicked back to Rei, she was only smiling harder. Yuuko blushed more, but she smiled back as well; there was no way she couldn’t. 

It had been a while since she’d seen Rei smile like that. Since she’d had the privilege of seeing Rei’s love painted so obviously. 

Yuuko battled—and Rei did too—constantly over the idea of leaving their kingdom and shirking their duties, and even now, while they were in the process of escaping, the conflict in her mind raged on. Abandoning their posts. Leaving behind their lives and their kingdoms. Even without the guilt and pain that came with departure, there was also the chance they would be found and brought back—there were so many negatives that had to be considered.

But when Yuuko thought about being able to see Rei smile like this every day, uninhibited and unafraid, there was only one choice in her mind.

Beside them, Jin and Konami both stood up out of their chairs, accompanied with the murmur of conversation not meant for Yuuko’s ears. The movement and the sound caused both her and Rei to jump a little, and the pure cliche of them being  _ lost in each other’s eyes _ made Yuuko want to blush all over again, but she kept it together and stood up as well.

She offered a hand to Rei, and Rei accepted it with a smile.

It was risky to be so openly affectionate when there were still people around. Yuuko couldn’t quite care. Her sleep had been plagued by dreams of losing Rei, over and over again in so many terrible ways that made her heart ache to even consider, and she needed to know Rei was here. She needed this. She needed Rei. Always, always, always.

Rei, with that ever-knowing look in her eyes, indulged Yuuko’s need for touch with a gentle smile.

In the meantime, Jin and Konami were coming to some sort of a decision. Yuuko tuned in to catch the last few remarks in the conversation, her gaze moving to the other two. 

Jin was leaning against the wall. Konami was shuffling around the room, cleaning up and neatening things. 

“What about Rindou-san?” Konami asked as she glared down at an unkept futon before picking it up and folding it with vehemence. It was amusing, and also rather impressive, to see that Konami approached every aspect of her life with that attitude.

Jin shrugged. His eyes were closed and he had that empty looking smile on his face, but Yuuko had no doubt he was plainly aware of his surroundings.

“He lives in town. There will be guards everywhere, we won’t be able to get close,” he replied. “I think I have an idea, though,”

Konami looked over at him with suspicion in her eyes. “I don’t like your tone,” she said, with just a hint of menace.

Jin opened his eyes and accompanied the gesture with a slow, sly smile. “Funny, people always tell me that,” he replied with a smirk. 

It made Yuuko want to hit him, just a little. Konami was evidently having the same feeling, considering the look on her face, which resulted in Yuuko feeling much closer to her as a result. 

Jin pushed off of the wall and put his hands behind his head, walking over to inspect Konami’s ruthless job of tidying up the futons. Konami took the chance to grab him and force a blanket into his arms, roping him into cleaning up with a huff.

Yuuko felt movement beside her, and she turned her head to see Rei going to pick up a blanket as well. She looked up at Yuuko and in the second that they held eye contact, they came to an agreement. Rei picked up a blanket at threw it in Yuuko’s direction.

Yuuko caught it easily.

“Tamakoma is quite out of the way. We could go there,” Jin said amicably as he folded. 

Konami made a high noise of protest, distress painting her features as she turned to look at Jin. She lightly batted him with the folded blanket in her arms, whining “With Torimaru? Is that really our only option?”

She then looked to Yuuko and Rei with the same despair on her face, as if they should be sympathising with her.

Jin laughed, just barely, but the way it lit up his features was genuine like he was never before. “Goodness, Konami, so dramatic,” he sighed, fending off Konami’s attacks with easy movements. “Kyousuke is a perfectly good citizen of Mikado,”

Konami, dramatic like Jin had just dubbed her, groaned and then pouted and then scoffed, rapidly cycling through reactions as she tended to do. 

With a huff, she grabbed the blanket that Jin had just finished folding and put it on top of the one she already had, then turned towards Yuuko and Rei. It took one expectant look for the two of them to place their now folded blankets on top of the pile in Konami’s arms, and she then made her way to the closet in the room with heavy steps. 

Yuuko noted that this heaviness was purposeful with amusement; Konami was a fighter, she had to have been trained to be light on her feet.

Yuuko looked over at Rei, whose face was neutral but eyes were sparkling with amusement. They shared a smile between them, rediscovering what it felt like to smile at the little things like that. 

When Yuuko turned away, she caught Jin watching Konami arrange the blankets into piles in the closet, a candid, half-formed smile on his face. It was a fond and indulgent one, and real, more real than anything he had before.

Konami turned back, closing the door to the closet with a firm  _ thud. _ Her gaze landed on Jin immediately, and she went from narrowed eyes and petulance to an allowing smile and fondness. It made Yuuko feel like a spectator, observing the moment between the two, so she turned away before the displacement could get any worse. She had had enough of intruding on moments between the two.

When Jin turned towards Yuuko and Rei and motioned towards the door, he had resumed his strange persona once again, but Yuuko felt a little more sympathetic towards him. He clapped his hands together and said: “On the road to Tamakoma, then?”

Konami only reacted with an eye-roll and affected pout this time, swinging her axe sheath onto her back and squaring her shoulders.

“Let’s go,” she said.

Yuuko turned to look at Rei.

Quieter, meant for Rei’s ears only, she said “Onwards then, Princess,”

Rei smiled. “Onwards, Kuma-chan,”

 

♛

 

Karasuma Kyousuke, or as Konami called him, Torimaru, lived in a house in the middle of the woods. Yuuko could gather, from the sparse conversation that passed as they were travelling, that he lived with two other people in this house: Kizaki Reiji and Usami Shiori. 

_ Torimaru. _ Yuuko noted that this nickname belied much more affection for this Karasuma than Konami showed outwardly. In general, Jin and Konami seemed very close to the inhabitants of Tamakoma; this didn’t help Yuuko shake the anxiety gripping her. It was most likely safe for Jin and Konami to go to Tamakoma, but she and Rei were members of a foreign country. One that, up until a decade or two ago, had been an enemy. On top of that, they were technically fugitives. 

Yuuko wasn’t certain of her and Rei’s safety, and she  _ had  _ to be. Rei had to be safe, above all.

They were walking behind Jin and Konami, so it was easy for Yuuko to lean in towards Rei and murmur “Princess, it might be better for us to leave now,” 

Rei inclined her head, just slightly, as if she already knew what Yuuko was thinking and was now weighing up the consequences. As they walked, their steps matched up.

After a while, Rei met Yuuko’s eyes and shook her head.

“We wouldn’t have a chance,”

Yuuko sighed with frustration, a scowl setting on her features. She hadn’t expected any other answer, in reality, but it still stung to hear.

Rei smiled at the reaction. “You know I’m right,” she said gently.

Yuuko met Rei’s eyes, and in them, she saw the truest force that she had ever known in her entire life. 

She smiled back. 

“Of course, Princess,” she replied, fake deference in her tone because she knew it would make Rei smile more. And she did: a beautiful, joyful smile that spread across her face and made itself at home, at home like smiles should always be on Rei’s face.

“Did you hear that, Konami? They made the right choice,”

Yuuko jerked her head up at the sudden sound, starting in alarm as she looked towards the owner of the voice. Jin was smiling easily, head cocked as he looked back at her and Rei. Beside him, Konami was turned towards them as well, rolling her eyes.

“It doesn’t take a genius to do that,” she retorted, starting to walk forwards again with a shake of her head. 

Jin made eye contact with Yuuko, and he managed to look vaguely apologetic as he said: “Sorry to eavesdrop,”. Yuuko didn’t believe that he was that sorry, but she dismissed it with a nod. He then adds “You don’t have to worry about Tamakoma, they’re very accepting. They won’t turn you away,”

Yuuko felt a little transparent, being seen through so easily, but she kept her head high and nodded again.

Rei, beside her, ever the diplomat, said “Thank you. That’s reassuring to hear,”

Jin nodded. With an almost faraway look in his eyes, he replied “You’ll stay safe. Trust me,” and although Yuuko’s initial, and continuing, impression of him had been one of insincerity, she felt herself believing him. There was something else, under his words, that made her think he had more invested in this than she could see.

She looked over at Rei and remembered that, to Jin and Konami, she too had more invested in Rei’s safety than they could see.

**Author's Note:**

> if you liked this fic, please consider donating to my ko-fi! it's linked in [my carrd](http://arashiyama.carrd.co) \- thank you so much if you do!


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